Use of photosensitive devices, such as photovoltaic (PVs) or solar cells to generate electrical power from solar energy or radiation may provide many benefits, including, for example, a power source, low or zero emissions, power production independent of a power grid, durable physical structures (no moving parts), stable and reliable system, modular construction, relatively quick installation, safe manufacture and use, and good public opinion and acceptance of use. Other photosensitive devices may also include solar thermal cells, photodiodes, photoresistors, photocapacitors, phototransducers, and phototransistors.
However, the failure of such photosensitive devices may be costly and may require significant time to replace or repair. Testing of photosensitive devices prior to shipment or installation may be costly and may even be destructive to the photosensitive device itself. Thus, traditionally a sample of photosensitive devices would be tested to determine the performance of a given photosensitive device design or configuration.
Conventional testing of photosensitive devices to determine, for example, degradation rates, may use sulfur plasma or incandescent bulbs as a light source. In traditional degradation testing, the photosensitive device would be photoexposed under the bulbs and occasionally the performance of the panels would be sampled. These systems typically expose a photosensitive device to a 1 sun equivalent (1,000 W/m2 light intensity) or even less for an extended period of time or even continuously for an extended period of time. A spectrum may further be defined according to the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) AM1.5G standard. It is desirable to reduce the overall testing time and increase the accuracy of determining photosensitive device performance so as to decrease the cost of a photosensitive device design or configuration, decrease the time-to-market, offer extended warranties to customers, and determine return on investment.
The features and advantages of the present disclosure will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. While numerous changes may be made by those skilled in the art, such changes are within the spirit of the invention.